Breast lumps and pain: Is this cancer?

Medical Video: Understand The Symptoms Of Breast Cancer - Manipal Hospital

Great pain accompanied by irritation in the breast can be a frightening specter for many women. Maybe you will wonder whether the pain you are experiencing is a sign of a serious illness.

Lumps found in the breast area of women (even men) are their main reason for visiting doctors. In fact, early breast cancer does not show any symptoms. Therefore, early detection is the main key to breast cancer patient safety.

See exposure to information about the signs, symptoms, and various types of breast cancer below.

Causes of pain and irritation

Many women mistakenly consider breast pain that they experience as breast cancer. In fact, in many cases, breast pain is not the first symptom of breast cancer. Breast pain (in medical terms called mastalgia) can also be caused by several factors, such as:

Hormone fluctuations caused by menstruation
Side effects of several birth control pills or infertility treatment
Bra that doesn't fit
Breast cysts
Big breast size, accompanied by neck, shoulder, or back pain
Stressful

Lumps in the breast

Lumps in the breast are not always cancerous. Lumps in the breast can be triggered by hormonal changes in adolescents to damage to fat tissue. According to the Mayo Clinic, more than 90% of breast lumps are not cancerous (benign) in women in their early 20s and early 50s.

Common causes of benign breast lumps include:

Breast infection
Fibrocystic breast disease
Fibroadenoma (tumor that is not cancer)
Fat necrosis (damaged tissue)
In the case of fat necrosis, a lump cannot be distinguished from cancer without using a biopsy. Tests for breast cancer will be explained later.

Signs of breast cancer

Breast lumps, pain, and irritation are often associated with breast cancer. In fact, the signs of breast cancer are usually indicated by conditions that actually feel lighter. Other symptoms of breast cancer are:

Liquid nipple or nipple goes inside
Enlargement of one breast
The breast surface is slightly concave
Textured "orange peel" skin
Pain in the vagina
Weight loss
Enlarged lymph nodes in the armpit
Veins appear on the breast

If you experience these symptoms, see your doctor immediately.

Breast test

Patients who experience pain, irritation, and lumps in the breast will be faced with several general test options, such as:

Mammogram: uses X-ray light in the breast to distinguish between benign and malignant cancer
Ultrasound: utilizes ultrasonic sound waves to produce images from a network
MRI: used in conjunction with other tests, other noninvasive imaging tests are used to examine breast tissue
Biopsy: taking a small amount of breast tissue as a sample for testing

Types of breast cancer

There are two categories of cancer properties:

Noninvasive (in situ): cancer has not spread from the initial tissue (stage 0)
Invasive (infiltration): cancer cells have spread to surrounding tissues (stages 1-4)

Infected tissue will determine the type of cancer:

ductal carcinoma: cancer in the lining of the milk ducts (most common)
lobular carcinoma: cancer of the breast lobule (where milk is produced)
sarckma: cancer in breast connective tissue (rare)

Genes and hormones that affect cancer growth

Genetic experts are beginning to study how genes affect cancer growth. They even identified:

HER-2: HER-2 in cancer cells triggers cancer growth. The right drugs can inhibit the HER-2 gene.
As with genes, hormones can also accelerate the growth of several types of breast cancer that have hormone receptors
Estrogen-positive receptors: cancer responds to estrogen
Positive progesterone receptors: cancer responds to progesterone
Negative hormone receptors: do not have hormone receptors

Treatment

The type of treatment chosen depends on the type and stage of the cancer. However, there are several treatments offered by general practitioners and specialists to treat breast cancer:

Lumpectomy: removal of cancerous tissue or lumps in the breast along with a small portion of healthy tissue around the cancer
Mastectomy: surgery to remove all breast tissue including infected tumors and tissues
Chemotherapy: the most common cancer treatment, chemotherapy uses anticancer drugs to inhibit the reproductive capacity of cancer cells
Radiation: radiation uses X-rays directed at treating cancer
Hormone therapy and targeted therapy: used when a wrong gene or hormone plays a role in cancer growth

Remember!

For any type of cancer, early detection and treatment are the main factors in determining the outcome. Breast cancer is classified as easy to treat and can usually be cured if detected early on. If you are concerned about breast pain or breast irritation experienced, immediately see a doctor.